As soon as she made eye contact with me, my gaze fell to the newspaper in my hand. Fuck, she almost caught me. My facial expression continued to express nothing—indifference. The crisp sound of the paper rustling seems too loud in the tense silence of the motorhome.

When I was sure that her piercing gaze was no longer boring a hole in my soul, I looked up at her again. She was talking to Alex and Charles, her head thrown back in laughter that carries across the paddock on the warm Italian breeze. Amazing, as if that should surprise me. Today's race is in Monza, so of course she came with her friend to cheer on Charles.

She hadn't been to the paddock for a long time. Not that I missed her... It's just that I haven't seen her and her damn, radiant aura for two months. The scent of her perfume still lingers in my memory—vanilla with a hint of something citrusy.

Seeing her literally cringing with laughter, one corner of my mouth involuntarily went up. But I rolled my eyes and now I was completely focused on the newspaper. Oh no, I had to turn it over. It was upside down. Fuck. Okay, I'm distracted by emotions before the race when I should be thinking about braking points and tire strategy.